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Football defeats La Puente

Varsity football won its first game of the season against La Puente on Friday, Sept. 12. They are currently 1-2, with a loss to Diamond Bar and Don Lugo. Walnut scored two consecutive touchdowns at the start of the game before La Puente could counter. The Mustangs led for most of the game because of its steady running game and won, 31-24.

Walnut scored a touchdown within the first minute of the game with senior running back Andy Coronado’s 44-yard run into the endzone. Walnut quickly scored another touchdown with a 6-yard run by senior quarterback Micah Maes.

“We practiced a lot harder for three days leading up to this game and we were really hyped to win since we haven’t gotten a win yet this season. The first two touchdowns boosted our spirits and we played harder because this was our chance,” sophomore running back Isaiah Hall said.

La Puente caught up with a touchdown and a field goal to close the gap, 14-10. A 27-yard run from Maes led to another touchdown, giving Walnut a 21-10 lead. Walnut had trouble defending La Puente’s running plays throughout the first half of the game, and the Warriors took the lead, 24-21 after several successful series that featured dynamic running plays.

Walnut lead 28-24 with around three minutes left in the game. The Mustangs kicked a field goal in the drive to ice the game at 31-24, securing its first victory of the season.

“We didn’t make any big changes offensively, but defensively we couldn’t stop them from running the ball so we took our outside linebacker and moved him inside to help out on runs and that made a huge difference in stopping their running game,” senior wide receiver Adam Broad said.

Walnut’s next game will be the Homecoming Game on Sept. 19 against Northview High School.